The seven French elementary school classes participating in the Additive Manufacturing for Healthy Future project rose to the technological challenge they were set with flying colors!
From Uno playing cards in Braille to anti-fog clips for glasses and even individual office trash cans, the roughly 300 children from seven elementary school classes (grades 2 through 5) participating in the 3D Printing Challenge competed to see who could come up with the most imaginative designs to create an object that could improve health or well-being!
Organized as part of EIT Manufacturing, this challenge aimed to make CAD and 3D printing accessible to young people. It brought together the Irish company Stryker, University College Dublin (UCD), the University of Tartu (Estonia), and Arts et Métiers.
Budding engineers
“In France, we have trained six elementary school teachers in 3D design and printing,” explains Imade Koutiri, head of the FabLab and thethird-yearAdditive Manufacturing program at the Paris campus, who coordinatedArts et Métiers participationArts et Métiers this project with Xavier Bonnet of the Georges Charpak Institute of Human Biomechanics.
Schools fromthe13tharrondissementof Paris, Bourg-la-Reine, Villemomble, Eragny, Stains, Meaux, and Aulnay-sous-Bois participated.
After receiving training, the teachers led the project in their classrooms and produced 3-minute videos to present their work.
These videos show that the children really got into the project: we see them proposing ideas and selecting the best project, drawing the object, conducting tests, analyzing problems, and fixing them… True budding engineers!
An international screening in January
A French jury met on December 16 to judge the projects. The Jenner School’s glasses holder, the Pierre Loti School’s book holder, the Foch School’s line tracer, and the Compayré School’s pen holder took the top three spots (including two ties) in the apprenticeship category. In the design track, the bottle keychain from Ecole-le-Bois, the Uno cards from Jean Moulin School, and the portable trash can from Pierre Loti School were recognized.
Finally, a screening session will be organized in January with partners from the three countries to view all the videos produced as part of this project.
“Ultimately, this challenge helped raise awareness of technology among the youngest students, reaching both girls and boys from all social backgrounds,”concludesImade Koutiri. An experience worth repeating!
Key points to remember
- 55 elementary school teachers trained in CAD and 3D printing in Ireland, Estonia, and France;
- 1,074 students participated in the challenge;
- 3D printers installed in schools.
